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Airbus and Thales Alenia want to review their participation in the European constellation Iris²

by AI | 16.Jul 2024 | Europe in brief AI

Two important members of the consortium responsible for developing the European Iris² constellation, Airbus and Thales Alenia, are considering withdrawing due to technological and financial risks.

A photo shows the Thales Alenia Space logo in a clean room of the Franco-Italian aerospace manufacturer's site in Toulouse, southwestern France, on March 21, 2023. (Photo: Lionel BONAVENTURE / AFP)

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Paris – Airbus and Thales Alenia Space (TAS), two of the main members of the consortium set up to develop the European Iris² constellation of secure communication satellites, want to review their participation in a project they consider too risky in its current state, sources close to the matter said on Tuesday.

According to the newspaper La Tribune, which revealed the information, the two companies wrote to the other main stakeholders in the project, the operators Eutelsat, Hispasat and SES, indicating that they intended to withdraw from the consortium.

It is not a question of calling into question the interest in this project but as it stands, “the conditions are not met,” a source close to the matter told AFP, citing a necessary “risk reduction phase.”

A flagship EU project after the Galileo (satellite positioning) and Copernicus (climate monitoring) programs, the Iris² project plans a network of multi-orbital satellites, including 170 in low orbit to be launched between 2025 and 2027. (16.07.2024)

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